Seal of Saints [PB]

Description

The Seal of the Saints Prophethood and Sainthood in the Doctrine of Ibn Arabi MICHEL CHODKIEWICZ Ibn Arabià ¢â‚ ¬â€ born in 1165 in Andalusia and died in 1240 in Damascusà ¢â‚ ¬â€ was recognised in his lifetime as al-Shaykh al-Akbar, the supreme spiritual Master. Over a period of eight centuries he has exerted a profound influence on Islamic mysticism. In recent years a number of important studies have helped acquaint the Western reader with Ibn Arabià ¢â‚ ¬â„ ¢s metaphysics and this process is now greatly enhanced by the present volume in which Michael Chodkiewicz explores for the first time, the Masterà ¢â‚ ¬â„ ¢s à ¢â‚ ¬˜hagiologyà ¢â‚ ¬â„ ¢ or teaching on sainthood. Founded on a careful analysis of the relevant texts, Chodkiewiczà ¢â‚ ¬â„ ¢s work examines this essential aspect of Ibn Arabià ¢â‚ ¬â„ ¢s doctrine of sainthood, defining the nature and function of sainthood, while also specifying the criteria for a typology of saints based on the notion of prophetic inheritance. Michel Chodkiewicz is Director of Studies at là ¢â‚ ¬â„ ¢Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris. à ¢â‚ ¬˜This is by far the best available explanation of the central importance of sanctity for understanding both the practical and the theoretical teachings of Sufism.à ¢â‚ ¬â„ ¢ William Chittick à ¢â‚ ¬˜An extraordinarily good book about an extremely difficult thinker...Chodkiewicz not only knows the texts remarkably well, but also avoids and rejects certain errors of perspective common among other scholars.à ¢â‚ ¬â„ ¢ TLS